Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Week 39

Welcome back and happy Tuesday.  Is it really October tomorrow?  You should see my calendar for October.  I'll have to get a picture up next week--chalk full!  This time of year always speeds by.  The holidays will be here before you know it.  What can you do?  Just go with the flow, enjoy the process, and take lots of pictures ;0)

Last week was a crazy, busy, but fun one.  Here are the shots:


Day 265- Monday, 9/22/14
Typical Monday these days--get the younger boys through homework, whip up a quick early dinner, and then head to the pool for high school water polo.  This is game #1 of the week against Laguna and the boys dominated.  Thanks Connie for your amazing game pictures.  Look at that monster long arm on my son.





Day 266- Tuesday, 9/23/14
Happy 16th birthday Tyler!  He had a quick special dinner (homemade nachos as requested) and a piece of cake between school, polo practice, and karate for his brothers. There wasn't much time to celebrate, but we made the most of it.





Day 267- Wednesday, 9/24/14
Water polo game #2 with Rio Linda and another great picture by Connie.  It's another win for the Raiders.  At least both games were home games this week so no traveling.  We got home just in time to watch the season premier of Survivor.  I love that we still all watch this as a family.  We have been watch religously since the first season in 2000 when Tyler was just 2yrs old. That's 14 years!






Day 268- Thursday, 9/25/14
What is that--rain???!  I woke up to and drove to work through a crazy rainstorm this morning.   It rained super hard but only lasted until about 10am.  It's a start though and hopefully means there will be more to come.  Later Rusty and Justin relaxed on the top bunk for some nightly reading.  This is one of Rusty's favorite spots now which of course pleases Justin to no end.





Day 269- Friday, 9/26/14
The water polo team has some great school spirit.  They got all painted up after practice and headed from the pool to the field to support the football team during homecoming.  They even made the evening news!  What a crazy, fun bunch of boys.  Thanks Brenda and Lori for the pictures.  I worked the early shift at the Booster's snack bar but had to leave before the boys got out of practice so I didn't get to see them in person.  Looks like they had a blast.





Day 270- Saturday, 9/27/14
Is it the weekend?  It sure doesn't feel like it.  Tyler is working at the Blood Source donation center for his service project this year and had a shift that started at 6am today! Who gives blood at 6am on a Saturday?  It was a long one too.  He was there for 4 1/2 hours.  While he was doing that the other boys helped clean house after tennis, and I did some grocery shopping to stock up for few days.





Day 271- Sunday, 9/28/14
It's overcast today and feels a lot like fall with a slight breeze, a crispness in the air, and cooler temps--the perfect day to bust out some fall decorations, turn on the oven, and bake some pumpkin bread to have with a warm cup of tea.  Yum!



That's all for now.  Thanks for stopping by and see you next week in October!



The Mom Creative

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Week 38

Welcome back and Happy Tuesday!  Today is my oldest son's 16th birthday!!!  He grew up in the blink of an eye.  We actually celebrated Tyler's birthday Sunday so you'll get to see his picture at the end of this post.  It's crazy how fast time flies and the kiddos grow up.  I need a pause button or at least a slow mode.  When someone figures that out let me know.

Until then I'll immortalize everyone in pictures so here are last week's shots:


Day 258- Monday, 9/15/14
This girl is getting old too.  Look at those sugar lips ;0)  I think she traumatized the hair follicles around her mouth by always eating so fast.  She's still as cute and sweet as ever--our beautiful Bella girl.





Day 259- Tuesday, 9/16/14
Brandon is my banana boy.  He'd eat an entire bunch in a day if I let him.  This is his go to after school snack.




Day 260- Wednesday, 9/17/14
I'm sensing a theme here--evidence that I'm old.  I received my 20 year service award at work today complete with a generic note from the Chancellor, a pin to wear on the lapel of my lab coat, and a VISA gift card.  Plus I now accrue more vacation time and have my health benefits for life.  It seems unreal that I've been in the same lab at the Veterinary School or all these years.  That too happened in the blink of an eye.  Now only 20 more until I retire.  Hopefully it will go just as quickly.





Day 261- Thursday, 9/18/14
Justin is happy it's Thursday and he's done with homework.  Friday will be a piece of cake and then he'll have his weekend.  He's looking forward to that.  Later on my walk with the dog I snapped a picture of the smoke plume from the King fire that started earlier this week in the foothills. Our poor state is fighting so many fires right now.  We need some rain!





Day 262- Friday, 9/19/14
Day one of another water polo tournament.  Number 5 is Tyler, and the boys are warming up for game two.  They did great today and are looking more like a united team.  We finished early so I was home in time to help Brandon walk the dog and then enjoyed the evening with my family.  You can see more evidence of the King fire in the hazy sky on our walk.  The smoke has made its way down into the valley, but the fire is really no where near us and burning in the opposite direction.





Day 263- Saturday, 9/20/14
Day two of water polo.  The coach was happy with how well the team played yesterday so he gave them their new suits and caps for the season.  They look great and the numbers on the caps are so much easier to read especially when they're in the water.  It was another good day at the pool.





Day 264- Sunday, 9/21/14
Tyler's birthday is on Tuesday which is the worst possible day of the week to have a birthday in this family because no one is home in the evening so we celebrated with cake and presents today.  He was a happy boy.




Wait! One more:

September's Family Photo








We're all home enjoying this relaxing Sunday so I decided it was time for September's family photo.  I made them all take the picture before I let them have cake ;0)  It works every time.  Look at those perfect smiles.  Even the dog cooperated.



OK, now that's it.  Thanks for stopping by and hope to see you next Tuesday.


The Mom Creative

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Week 37

Welcome back and happy Tuesday!  After a long HOT week we are finally cooling a bit but unfortunately many places of our state are on fire.  Please someone send us some rain!  I'm ready to move on to fall and welcome some changes in the weather.  Let's hope it happens soon.  Oh and guess what? It's still super busy here.  I have a feeling that will never change ;0)

Take a look at last week's pictures:


Day 251- Monday, 9/8/14
It's nice to have your best friend to relax with after doing a grueling hour of homework.  I'm not sure why he's in a blanket with these temps but whatever works.  I think the a/c was blowing right on him.  At least he's happy and relaxed.





Day 252- Tuesday, 9/9/14
They announced the USA Water Polo Academic All-Americans today and Tyler was on that list.  He and 3 of his best friends made the list proving that they can perform just as well in the classroom as the water.  Way to go boys!





Day 253- Wednesday, 9/10/14
We keep finding signs of fall or is it the drought?  I want and need to see some nice fall color.  This brown dry stuff is not cutting it.





Day 254- Thursday, 9/11/14
Never Forget!  I took the two younger boys to our local memorial after school today.  It's a great display that really drives home how many we lost.  Our local fire crew was there too so it was nice to see them paying tribute as well.





Day 255- Friday, 9/12/14
TGIF!  It's family movie night so we're popping popcorn and watching Captain America the Winter Soldier.  The boys are super excited to be seeing yet another Marvel movie.





Day 256- Saturday, 9/13/14
It's time for a date night.  John and I escaped to Davis and had dinner at Bistro 33.  I love the outdoor dinning here but it was WAY too hot- 103! so we opted for dining indoors with the a/c.  LOL!  It didn't matter.  It was all good and great just to get out.





Day 257- Sunday, 9/14/14
Tyler and I spent the morning at the MIND Institute for Tyler's 2nd year visit in the teen brain study.  I had a bunch of forms and rating scales to fill out while he played computer games and did some math assessments.  Afterward we grabbed lunch before braving the traffic caused by fix 50 construction on the freeway right where we needed to exit for home.  We were both super happy we ate first!




That's it.  Thanks for stopping by and hope to see you next week.


The Mom Creative

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Week 36

Welcome back!  We're still trying to get back into the swing of things with juggling work, school, and sports schedules. There's not a lot of time for just being home which is what I miss most about summer, and it seems like when we are home we're rushing to get the homework done before it gets too late for bedtime.  Hopefully it will all click and seem like the new normal soon.  I have a feeling we'll blink and September will be gone.

Take a look at how we kicked it all off in last week's pictures:


Day 244- Monday, 9/1/14
Yay for Labor Day!  After starting school last month it's nice to have a long weekend to reconnect.  On this first day in September we grilled, we made more fresh ice-cream, and we swam.  Too bad this marks the end of summer.





Day 245- Tuesday, 9/2/14
Brandon's reading like crazy trying to get through this 400 page book for a "Reading Counts" test on Friday.  He didn't realize he had less than 2 weeks before the test when he selected the book. Next time it will have to be something much shorter.  The sad thing is he was really excited to read this one and happy it was at his level but is now frustrated he has to rush through it.  I'm so not a fan of the Reading Counts program.  My kids love to read but this makes it more of a chore than a treat and quite honestly turns them off from it.





Day 246- Wednesday, 9/3/14
We picked up Justin's new glasses today and he's thrilled because they have green on the side and also some hints of green that show up in the metal around the eyes when you look at them just right.  As you can tell green is his favorite color and wearing it makes him happy.  Thank goodness the glasses are tastefully green and not too "in your face" like the green on the bands of his braces ;0)





Day 247- Thursday, 9/4/14
On our walk today we found some signs of fall.  I do hope in spite of this drought we actually get to see some color falling and not just a bunch of brown, dead leaves.





Day 248- Friday, 9/5/14
Day 1 of the Sierra Shootout water polo tournament.  Luckily I was able to get the day off from work and could be there to watch all 3 games.  We'll be back tomorrow for 2 more.  Sadly this team is going through some growing pains and needs some work.  We all hope this weekend helps.






Day 249- Saturday, 9/6/14
Day 2 in water polo world.  It's super sunny and hot out there so the team finds places like Starbucks with air conditioning to chill between games.  I love that this place has a huge table for all of them.  The last game of the day was a nail biter going into double overtime.  They fought hard and played better in the end than they did most the weekend but it just wasn't enough.  They've got a couple scrimmages and another tournament before the league games start so they'll keep at it and hopefully pull it together for some wins.





Day 250- Sunday, 9/7/14
Tyler's trying to catch up on homework before the season-opener between the 49ers and the Cowboys.  He has so much work to do especially after missing an entire day of school for polo Friday.  I'm sure after the game he'll be right back here plugging at it again.




That's it for now.  Thanks for stopping by and hopefully I'll see you again next week.


The Mom Creative

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Week 35

Welcome back and here we are in September already.  August seemed like a really long month. Maybe it was because there was so much going on.  I just wish September didn't mean the end of summer.  I do love fall, but I'm not quite ready for summer to be over yet which why we are still trying to pack as many summer activities in as we can. 

Here's the last week in pictures to prove it :


Day 237- Monday, 8/25/14
It's back to afternoon homework for the boys.  Brandon has his snacks and a homework buddy to help although I'm not sure if she's really helping or distracting.





Day 238- Tuesday, 8/26/14
The new high-school water-polo season is now underway, and today was the first home game.  It was just a scrimage but still a game none-the-less and much needed practice.  We need to get these boys working as a team again. They're lucky they play a water sport and get to be in the pool instead of running around on some field in this heat.  It still feels very much like summer with temps close to 100 expected all week.





Day 239- Wednesday, 8/27/14
Here are just a few of Tyler's books for the 1st semester of his junior year.  He has a full load and a couple of really demanding classes.  I have a feeling he'll be spending a great deal of the next few months with his nose in a book and when he's not there he'll be in the water with the polo team.  Such a busy kid!





Day 240- Thursday, 8/28/14
The sky was so pretty and amazing today.  The first shot was at sunrise in Davis up on the 5th floor in our lab building, and the second shot was at sunset in West Sacramento out the back of our house.





Day 241- Friday, 8/29/14
TGIF!  Justin is happy to be done with school for the week and is looking forward to a long holiday weekend so he can spend more time playing with Rusty.  We're still waiting on his new glasses.  These ones are so bent out of shape and done.  Hopefully new ones will come in next week.





Day 242- Saturday, 8/30/14
I've been meaning to drag out the ice-cream maker all summer and just never got around to it, so since we're all home this long weekend and it's super hot out ice-cream it is!  Brandon helped me make the first batch--fresh strawberry.  Yum!  We also made a batch of s'mores ice-cream and York peppermint patty ice-cream.  I bought more heavy whipping cream than I needed so we still have to make one more batch and cookies and cream has been requested.





Day 243- Sunday, 8/31/14

We're squeezing in as many bike rides as we can get before the weather changes.  I love it when there is a 3-day weekend and Sunday feels more like a Saturday.  Today we had time to ride bikes, BBQ, night swim, and gather around the fire pit to make s'mores.  Summer's going out with a bang!




That's it!  Have fun wrapping up your summer and hopefully I'll see you next week.


The Mom Creative